


Twin Beaks

by novatrick



Category: Fall Out Boy, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Band, Alternate Universe - Pokemon, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-01
Packaged: 2019-02-26 04:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13227777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/novatrick/pseuds/novatrick
Summary: Not even an up-and-coming Gym Leader could motivate Joe to reserve his spot to register as a Pokémon trainer. He had no drive and no reason to be a trainer.Fate would need more than one reason to convince Joe otherwise. It'd need two.





	Twin Beaks

"Joe, this is a critical time in a kid's life..."

"And I'm critically against it!"

This conversation was a bit of a broken record. No matter what Andy said, he couldn't convince Joe to book an appointment with the local Professor for the year. Without that appointment, registering as a Pokémon trainer would be tedious and difficult, to say the very least.

Joe was an awfully stubborn teen. It's not that he hated Pokémon, he just couldn't see himself becoming a trainer. Ever.

"You can't say things like that for no reason."

"I have several reasons!" The teen sipped his coffee with pride.

"Then you're going to have to explain to the both of us..."

Andy removed his Cottonee from the safety of his lap. Buggy orange eyes blinked in confusion, missing the warmth of her trainer's thighs and disregarding the chill of the metallic patio table.

"Okay! Number one: not a whole lot of Pokémon appeal to me. I'd be terrible at completing a Pokédex."

"Not every trainer fills their Pokédex," Andy retorted, "To ask every trainer to fulfill requirements for over a dozen myths would border on torture."

"Uh..." Joe grunted, "Number two: I'd have absolutely no patience to run or take part in a gym or a trial, or whatever they're calling them now..."

"All the more reason for you to visit me at my gym! You don't have to challenge me to say hey."

Andy said this as he stroked his Cottonee's leaves. Admittedly, he was still in the process of obtaining the gym's lease, but he was one step closer to having his dream facility set up. He was primed to be one of the youngest Gym Leaders in the region at the tender age of twenty one.

Joe's arms folded across his chest. He knew exactly where this conversation was going, and he wanted no part of it.

"Look, if you're gonna shoot down all of my reasons, then what's the point of explaining why I don't wanna be a trainer?"

"Because your reasons revolve around preconceived notions about what a trainer should be..." Andy said, "A trainer isn't someone that follows the path ahead of them. They forge their own path, have their own goals... yes, some battle with Pokémon, but others play together, perform together, work together..."

"But then what would I be doing? I'd have no goals..."

"You don't have to know what you're doing before you get a Pokémon," Andy concluded his argument, "Just get one, and start your adventure from there. Sometimes, all you need to get you started is to meet the right Pokémon."

Joe huffed as he reached for a doughnut. Sure, Andy had points, but he had heard them all before. He couldn't help it, he just had no interest in becoming a trainer.

The crinkles of the wrapper caught unwanted attention. The shadowy glint of crimson eyes locked on their target. One fried and powdered doughnut, primed for human consumption, but better for avian delight.

In the blink of an eye, Joe's doughnut was ripped from his clutches. Cottonee shuddered as the Murkrow flew above her, dust from the doughnut hid within her wool. At first, there was stunned silence. In the next moment, Joe sprung to his feet, sending his patio chair in motion behind him.

"See?! This is another reason why! A lot of wild Pokémon are jerks!"

Before Andy could protest, Joe took off running. They were both fortunate that they had paid for their confections prior to seating themselves. Andy balanced his Cottonee and his coffee carefully before following.

* * *

Joe hadn't lost sight or motivation to follow the thief for his food. Before long, he was clearing the tall grass of the nearby field just outside of town.

Murkrow finally landed in its nest. Its buddies sensed the treat and came out of the woodwork to admire their new feast.

Joe wasn't about to let those birds think they had won. He swiftly took a rock and tossed it into the nest.

"Thieving birds! Gimme my doughnut back!"

"Krow! Krow!"

Midnight black wings flapped in anger. The murder of Murkrow had forgotten about lunch, and had their targets fresh on the angry human. As they rose in flight and hovered above his height, Joe realized the error of his ways. Stuck between lengthened blades, all alone. Even he knew that fields, caves, and especially the tall grass were dangerous to travel without a companion in your pocket.

Andy hadn't caught up to him yet. Joe would have to act fast to protect himself; only one immediate solution came to mind.

_Cowardice!_

Joe dove forward, barely dodging the swooping predators. He skidded slightly, dusting up his green t-shirt heavily. However, he also landed within arms-reach of what was rightfully his. Joe took his doughnut back into protection, but knew better than to eat it immediately. He scrambled to his feet and attempted to run again, but soon tripped over himself. Joe covered his head and tucked himself inward. With the cries of the Murkrow loud and clear, he knew that his time had come. The bruises were coming. It was only a matter of-

"Daw! Daw!"

The thunderous thumping of oversized feet overpowered the Murkrow's murmurs. The shadow that cast itself past Joe was strange. It was two thin shadows, each with an orb attached at the tip. The orbs themselves seemed to have yet another protrusion.

Joe flipped himself over and found himself staring at the back of a wild Doduo, which began to run circles around the flock. Doduo then began to run around Joe, only confusing him further.

The Murkrow looked at each other in confusion, unsure what to make of the Doduo either. Eventually, the dust that the Pokémon was kicking up was enough for the Murkrow to lose interest.

Joe watched the flock fly away before standing up. The wild Pokémon was still circling Joe, but he had slowed down considerably.

"Hey, uh..." Joe pivoted his head a bit, watching the Doduo closely, "You didn't have to do that..."

"Daw?"

"... but I appreciate it. Thank you."

Again, Joe didn't hate Pokémon. He just didn't have the slightest clue what he'd do with himself if he had to be responsible for the damn things.

Doduo slowed to a stop, pausing square in front of Joe.

"Doo-oh? Doo-oh!"

Each head narrowed in on Joe from either side. It was purely out of curiosity but it was still slightly intimidating. Four beady black eyes were trained on the boy, unsure of what to say or do next.

Joe looked at Doduo, then at the doughnut in his hand. The bird Pokémon wasn't eyeing Joe's food, but Joe felt a warmth come over him. He unwrapped the doughnut fully and broke the treat in two, letting a bit of ruby red jelly glimmer in the sunlight.

"Here, you earned this."

"Duo! Duo!!"

The doughnut pieces was consumed in unison. Subsequent squawks concluded that each mind enjoyed the doughnut. Admittedly, Joe was enjoying the company of the Pokémon, too. Not just because Doduo stepped in at a critical time, but... it was kind of cool. A double-headed flightless bird that could still technically Fly? Joe couldn't exactly verbalize how he related to Doduo, but they were practically on the same spiritual wavelength.

"Nee! Nee-nee!"

Cottonee's cries caught Joe's attention. Andy had finally caught up to them, but stopped short of breaching personal space.

"What's this, Mr. "I'm Not a Pokémon trainer?" Is that a new friend I see?"

"M-Maybe," Joe's cheeks puffed up slightly. Deep down, he knew the truth, but he didn't want to admit to Andy that he was right.

"You know, the Professor's office closes soon..." Andy reminded him, "But if Doduo doesn't mind, he could probably get you to the lab in time."

"How would a wild Pokémon know where the lab is?"

"He wouldn't. But you do."

Joe and Doduo exchanged another set of looks. Andy remained smug as he watched the flying-type Pokémon duck down to allow Joe to climb on.

"Y-You sure?"

"Do! Duo!"

Despite the two heads clearly shouting different cries, they both seemed to agree. Doduo liked Joe. Joe liked Doduo back.

Carefully, Joe ascended onto wingless glory. Cottonee cheered as Joe got more comfortable on Doduo.

"All right..." Joe said, "We're gonna go back into town, then I'll tell you where to turn, okay?"

"Duo! Do-do!"

"Do I get a lift, too?"

"Nuh-uh," Joe shook his head and laughed a bit, "No Gym Leaders allowed. This ride's for unregistered trainers only!"

As Joe rode off into town with Doduo, Andy couldn't hold back his smile. Cottonee looked up quietly at her trainer, wondering why he didn't seem so irritated. Andy glanced down at his own Pokémon, the cheer still evident on his face.

"I was right."

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, it's my first stab at this, mostly written so I can get used to posting onto this site, in preparation for something bigger. But I've had band x Pokémon headcanons for a while now. If the demand's high enough, I can supply more regarding this headcanon series, but they'd most likely be one-shots and not a full continuity.


End file.
